Chapter 1773 – What Happened to the Promised Homebody’s Loneliness?
“I am a great charming figure: is this really enough?”
Jiang Pengji yawned and fanned the ink on the recently copied page dry with a fan.
“Of course it’s enough! I even wrote in detail about how to collect latex from rubber trees—does that not seem thorough?”
However, the dried fish crowd felt it wasn’t enough; they insisted on adding refined latex processing methods to avoid unnecessary detours.
Jiang Pengji chose to refuse.
Some things can be resolved simply by spending time, like finding rubber trees and seeds, and summarizing with local indigenous people about how to cultivate and treat diseases. She didn’t mind using cheat codes to shorten processes for those time-consuming tasks.
Yet when it came to research, she didn’t want to keep relying on cheats for everything.
Using cheats meant depriving herself of the research and exploration process, which also erased the infinite possibilities for the future.
She willingly offered guidance and advice; even if it meant taking a detour, that was fine because it was a process of experience accumulation.
Once this process was lost and the spirit of research faded, the technology tree would stagnate or even retrogress.
She employed the woodworking workshop staff with a high salary to cultivate them, not to raise a bunch of good-for-nothings waiting for handouts.
“How to create the products I want from latex? Let them explore on their own. I’ll just give them a little advice.”
Despite the Old Commander blacklisting Jiang Pengji, he had locked her up for a few hours but then released her, even sending her several barrels of fresh latex. It’s a classic case of someone saying one thing but meaning another; the Old Commander was proud and tough on the outside, yet his body was very honest.
Unable to resist, Jiang Pengji couldn’t help but slip in a few cheeky remarks, only to be met with the Old Commander’s flustered reprimands.
“I’m generous and magnanimous, not one to clash with a menopausal woman.”
Jiang Pengji muttered a few words under her breath and sent someone to deliver the latex and book to the woodworking workshop.
Natural rubber is made from the latex that flows from rubber trees, solidifying and drying to become an elastic solid. It appears ordinary but has a wide range of uses. Even in Jiang Pengji’s time, rubber subtly infiltrated all aspects of people’s lives, and in the dried fish’s dimension, it was even more widespread, used in industry, national defense, transportation, medicine, and daily life.
Jiang Pengji thought the arrival of this material would spark a flurry of activity in the woodworking workshop, but instead, it barely caused a ripple.
After waiting several days without seeing any progress reports, she couldn’t help but visit in person.
There were three big shots in the woodworking workshop, forming an iron triangle: Zhang Ping, Shao Guang, and Bai Yuexia.
When Jiang Pengji arrived, she only saw two of them.
“Is Yuexia not here today?”
The two greeted her in turn.
Zhang Ping looked a bit worried and said, “She’s feeling heavy with child and generally comes only around noon.”
Jiang Pengji was taken aback, “Heavy with child?”
But Bai Yuexia was still single; how could she be heavy with child?
Zhang Ping sheepishly replied, “This matter is my fault.”
Just then, Jiang Pengji scanned Zhang Ping and noticed something unusual. The usually solitary and scholarly Zhang Ping had a faint scent of powder lingering near him, and his clothing was distinctly different from usual…
Jiang Pengji managed to ask, “Does General Bai know about this?”
The old general was busy defending against external enemies at Zhanjiang Pass. Here was Zhang Ping, a bachelor in his late twenties, fooling around with his daughter and somehow causing an unplanned pregnancy?
From what Jiang Pengji knew about the old General Bai, once he returned in triumph, the first thing he’d want to do was punch Zhang Ping in the head. In this era, having an unplanned pregnancy meant the woman was foolish, and the man was scummy. But Zhang Ping looked nothing like a scummy guy, and Bai Yuexia wasn’t foolish either.
Zhang Ping explained, “I wrote him a letter months ago, but there has been no reply.”
Without the future father-in-law’s return, Zhang Ping dared not marry her, and time flew by as Bai Yuexia’s belly swelled like a balloon.
Since learning of Bai Yuexia’s pregnancy, he couldn’t sleep or eat well, and he was at risk of losing all his hair from stress.
Bai Yuexia, unlike ordinary women, didn’t fuss over her unplanned pregnancy. Still, Zhang Ping fretted about the nasty rumors that could hurt her reputation. Zhang Ping was a real man; if anyone dared whisper or speculate about Bai Yuexia being with another man, he would step up and claim the child as his own, unashamedly owning it. If he were one of those cowardly scummy guys, he’d have already shifted the blame off himself.
As the due date approached, Zhang Ping’s condition worsened.
“My Lord, how about you stand in for General Bai … at least to arrange the marriage before the childbirth, so the child can have a proper recognition…”
An unplanned pregnancy meant that child would be deemed illegitimate.
Zhang Ping was worried someone would someday use this against the child as they grew up.
Without the father-in-law able to return, things were tough, but if the Lord officiated the wedding, it would appear more legitimate, and the preparations would certainly move faster.
But Jiang Pengji replied, “Speaking of legitimacy, I was just reminded of the child from the Zheng family…”
Hui Jun also had an unplanned pregnancy; she had been pregnant but never agreed to marry Fu Wang, eventually forcing him to shamelessly acknowledge her household.
Over the years, some harsh words circulated around them, yet no one dared speak them to that couple because they were both not easily provoked.
Their pair of twins had been studying at the Golden Scales Academy for several years now, living comfortably off their parents and firmly establishing their dominance in the academy.
By that comparison, Bai Yuexia’s situation really didn’t seem so bad.
Zhang Ping appeared taken aback like he hadn’t thought of this angle.
“Let’s wait for General Bai to return before planning the wedding. If your future father-in-law intends to give you a beating, I’ll stand in your way.” Zhang Ping was a scholar and didn’t have the build of a battle-hardened general, and if the father-in-law truly went off, Zhang Ping, this older bachelor, would get himself knocked out. “When to marry isn’t crucial, as long as you don’t change your mind. If that happens, I can’t protect you.”
Jiang Pengji, like many supervisors, didn’t enjoy office romances.
Couples could work, but if an office romance went well, it was a beautiful story; if it fell apart, it turned into a tragedy.
If they fell out but continued working in the same institution, how would they get through meetings or deal with work delays?
If Zhang Ping truly had the gall to break such a bond, Jiang Pengji would have to turn a blind eye and let Bai Ning deal with him.
What else could she do?
Dissolved relationships aren’t something a boss can just smooth over; they either end up resigning and changing jobs or vanish to the ends of the earth to avoid seeing each other.
Zhang Ping and Bai Yuexia were specialists; they couldn’t transfer to other departments, so one of them would inevitably get hurt.
Jiang Pengji hadn’t come to gossip about her subordinates’ romantic lives; she turned the topic back to work.
“What’s the progress on the latex research that was sent over recently?”
Zhang Ping quickly switched back to work mode, looking puzzled.
“There has been some progress; however… I am curious, what does the Lord need this for?”
Jiang Pengji hesitated a moment, debating whether to say it was for family planning or for making tires…
“This substance, once solidified, has vast applications.”
Zhang Ping respectfully replied, “Please enlighten me.”
“For example…” Jiang Pengji still didn’t outright say “family planning,” but thought fast and came up with a plausible response, “This substance could be used to create shoe soles. The soldiers’ straw sandals wear out too quickly, and wooden clogs are not convenient for quick movement, whereas this material is different…”
“The Lord speaks truly! This material is sturdy yet elastic; making shoe soles from it would indeed alleviate a lot of suffering for the soldiers.” Zhang Ping was inspired, quickly adapting his thinking, “Elastic… right, perhaps we could even use it for carts to reduce jolts during travel…”
As the discussion grew lively, Zhang Ping and Shao Guang turned to each other in a fervent whisper, inadvertently ignoring their superior, Jiang Pengji!
